My Best Christmas
by Mcxynth
Summary: All this time, she waited. And waited... And this Christmas, she was ready to give up hope and move on. GraLu. Oneshot.


**MY BEST CHRISTMAS**

**Summary: **All this time, she waited. And waited... And this Christmas, she was ready to give up hope and move on. GraLu. Kinda AU. Oneshot.  
**Genre: **Romance :3  
**Rating: T for Safety**  
**Pairing: GraLu**

**DISCLAIMER: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima :) I own nothing, except for this story and its plot.**

Here is a Christmas special for all of you :) Starring Gray and Lucy~ XD Hope you'll like it :3  
(You might be surprised at how mature their seven year old versions are =3=)

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**~Now Playing: Music Box by Hatsune Miku (Vocaloid)~ (opt.)**

**-10 Years Ago-**

_"Gray! Natsu! Erza! Wait for me~!" a young and small blonde girl ran across the green fields, catching up with her friends. Her friends laughed and let her catch up. _

_Gray slowed down until he was running side-by-side with Lucy. He smirked. "Hurry up, slowpoke!" he teased._

_Lucy stuck her tongue out at him, but the bright smile on her face proved she was grateful for his kind gesture. The both of them ran side-by-side, laughing along with the antics of Erza and Natsu (when they had caught up). After the running, they stopped for a rest beside the old sakura tree at the top of the hill._

_Erza and Natsu leaned on the tree for support, while Lucy and Gray leaned on each other, fast asleep..._

_Days and weeks passed by that summer. The group of friends played together, went to school together, laughed together. Even until winter._

_But on one certain summer day..._

_"Gray, what's that?" Little Lucy innocently asked Gray as she watched him put down a small brown chest near the tree. Natsu and Erza stared at him with equal curiousity._

_Gray smiled at them. "Ah, this?" he gestured to the chest. "You could call it a time capsule."_

_Lucy cocked her head to the side questioningly._

_"Time capsule?" Natsu asked._

_Gray's smile widened into that of a grin. "This would be where we will store our memories of us together," he explained. The rest smiled and nodded in acknowledgment to his idea. Gray took out some papers for them to doodle on, and they drew anything that their imagination let them do._

_Lucy showed her drawing to Gray. "Ne, Gray, look~! What do you think?"_

_Gray looked up from his own work and studied at Lucy's. He smiled at the picture of the four of them, with Lucy and him in the middle __**- **_holding hands.

_"It's great."_

_Lucy smiled brightly and sat back down, putting in the last few "finishing touches" to her work. Behind her, Natsu and Erza's smiles saddened as they gazed at Gray. _

_"Are you sure you aren't going to tell her?" Natsu whispered, careful enough to escape Lucy's ears._

_Gray's smile vanished and his face dimmed. "I don't know how. Look at her, she's too...happy."_

_"Gray," Erza put a hand on his shoulder. "You _have _to tell her. Who knows what will happen... when you suddenly leave."_

_The raven-haired boy looked up at her, deep in thought. After a few seconds, he shook his head. "I'll... manage somehow."_

_His two friends looked at each other, then shook their heads in disagreement. Gray opened his mouth to speak once more, but was interrupted by Lucy's cheerful voice._

_"What are you guys talking about without me?" she chimed as she scooted closer to them, at the same time putting in her drawing inside the chest. "Come on, share it with me, too~!"_

_Gray, Erza, and Natsu put on forced smiles, enough to convince the girl._

_"It's nothing important, Luce," Erza said._

_"Why won't we play a game of tag?" Natsu suggested. Gray looked at him questioningly, but the salmon-haired boy signalled him to play along._

_Lucy didn't seem to notice the exchange. She nodded happily. "Yeah! Let's play!" she cheered as she stood up and ran ahead of them downhill. "Last one there's the rotten egg~!"_

_Her three friends looked at her with mixed emotions and expressions, contemplating whether or not to follow her. They didn't know what made her like that; she accepted Natsu's offer without any questions or complaint. And challenging them to a race? It didn't seem like her._

_However, what they didn't know..._

_What they didn't see..._

_Were the tears dropping from her eyes as she ran away._

_Gray stood up and proceeded to follow after her, when Erza held his forearm to stop him. "Gray, please," she urged, her eyes already pleading._

_The boy's eyes softened, but he merely nodded before he took off to follow Lucy. The other two stayed in their places, unmoving. Nodding to each other, they silently agreed to stay where they are and watch the other two savor _their last moment with each other.

_Gray chased after Lucy, eventually catching up to her and then over-taking her. He put on a huge grin on his young features. But it was fake._

_Lucy laughed and put her tongue out. "Cheater~!" she playfully teased._

_"And I'm the cheater? Who was the one who went ahead?" Gray challenged._

_Lucy pouted for a few seconds before smiling once again. "Anyhow, let's play!" she cheered. For a few moments, Gray was taken aback - surprised that Lucy didn't talk back at him. But he shrugged it off and followed suit._

_"Alright, you're it!" he laughed._

_Lucy stuck her tongue out once more, then laughed. "You have 5 seconds, Gray~!" Gray took her up on that and ran off in a random direction. Seeing Gray run away from her made her choke back the tears threatening to follow the previous ones. Stubbornly, the girl swallowed and fought back the tears. "Time's up!" she called as she ran after Gray._

_The two continued laughing and chasing each other 'til sunset. Exhausted, the both of them trudged back to the sakura tree. Erza and Natsu had gone home it seems, since no one else was there. They plopped and laid down on the grass to take a rest._

_Heaving out deep sighs, their eyes met and they smiled. Simultaneously, each of them raised their pinky in a pinky promise. _

_"Promise?" Lucy asked softly. "We'll be together forever?"_

_Gray's smile faltered, but he managed to let it stay. "...Promise."_

_Their pinkies locked together, 'til Lucy held Gray's hand. Feeling a bit better, Lucy smiled and closed her eyes, letting herself fall asleep. As she slept, a stray tear fell from Gray's eyes. "I'm sorry, Luce," he mumbled, his throat constricting as he fought back more tears. _

_Slowly, he pulled himself up to a sitting position. He gazed at Lucy for what he knew was the last time he could. He scanned her sleeping face, memorizing its features. Again, he gulped back the tears as he stood up and slowly laid down Lucy's hand. _

_For the last time, he looked back at her. Tears were cascading down his face._

_He took a step backward, then turned on his heel. And without looking back..._

**"Goodbye, Luce.."**

_...he left._

_._

_._

_Minutes later, Lucy hesitantly opened her eyes. Slowly. And when she had already opened them fully, she cried._

_She knew._

_She knew about it._

_There was no Gray laying down beside her anymore._

_There was no Gray who would play with her anymore._

_There was no Gray. Anymore._

_She sat up. "W-Why..." she sobbed, tears falling on her hand - the same hand that held the promise. "You promised... Gray." She closed her eyes, trying hard to stop the tears cascading down her face. "Don't leave me alone... Please..."_

_**"Promise."**_

_Gray's word replayed in her mind like a broken record. But it did no help to soothe her broken heart. In fact, it worsened it._

_"Why..." she sobbed once more. "I...want to see you, please...At least...One more time..."_

_Finally, she let herself collapse in tears. Her loud cries echoed throughout the field._

_'Goodbye'..._

_Without even saying it..._

_It had announced the end..._

_That summer day._

.

.

.

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**- Ten Years Later -**

**Lucy's POV**

The cold winter's breeze blew, sending snowflakes flittering and sparkling in the early morning sky. Nature has wrapped the city in a white blanket, as if sending it and its surroundings to a peaceful, serene sleep.

But for me, there was no peace.

Sitting on a quiet hill not far from Magnolia, I watched the thriving city as it started preparing for Christmas Eve. I raised a hand to brush off some snow from my head. _It's Christmas again_. I held out a hand to catch a snowflake.

Smiling a sad smile, I let a stray tear run down my cheeks. _Everyone's been having a lot of fun lately, as always, _I chuckled mirthlessly. I stared up at the blue sky, letting some flakes of snow drop on my face. _But..._

_How are you doing, Gray?_

I scanned my eyes, viewing the hill. _I have always waited for you on this same hill. _I let my eyes wander to the little box quite hidden under a pile of snow. I had dug it up when I came here, since I planned to bask myself in the memories of my childhood.

But the memory of Gray's departure was the first one that came to mind.

My throat constricted and I fought the urge to cry. I can't believe it. I'm 17 now. I'm supposed to be mature. I have told myself over and over to not cry again. To not cry over his departure. To not cry over _him._

With my hands slightly shaking, I reached for the chest that he called a "time capsule". Carefully, I opened it, taking in the smell of old papers and crayons. I chuckled once I've found my clumsily folded drawing, although the tiny laugh came out hollow. With tender care, I opened the drawing and immediately more tears fell.

In the drawing were my three best friends and I. Natsu was on my right and Gray was on my left. Erza was beside Gray. And Gray's hand was holding mine.

But that was not the thing that made me cry, however.

It was the thin red line that I had drawn between the both of us.

And beside the red line, the words written were:

_I love you, Gray. Don't leave me._

I remembered writing that when I heard _their conversation_ that day years ago. I was shocked, and not knowing what to do, as tears fell, I wrote those words down followed by a line between Gray and I.

A salty tear dropped on the paper. Realizing that I was crying already, I tenderly folded the paper and put it back in the box.

I laid a clenched fist on my chest. The feeling I have kept for years... The feeling I have kept hidden... I felt it about to burst out.

But, I _had _to move on. This is just too much. Ten years should have been enough to make me realize that...

He isn't coming back anymore.

"This would be the 10th Christmas that he won't be here. I shouldn't be sad anymore, since I endured it 9 times already," I muttered to myself, loud and clear, as if to convince myself.

I sobbed and let my tears freely drop. Every year, the same thing happened. I would come here to try to clear my mind, only to have all these memories come to my mind like a train at full speed. Then I would cry helplessly like the child I was back then, again and again.

Minutes ticked by, and I felt the rays of the sun on me. As realization struck, that I had stayed there longer than expected, I hastily rubbed my eyes and stood up. After a last look on the place that held so much memories, I walked away.

**Natsu's POV**

Erza and I, crouched behind some bushes, watched Lucy leave the hill. I heard Erza sigh beside me. "That Lucy... she's still suffering..." she muttered. I nodded my head slowly in agreement.

She turned her head to face me. "Have you heard from Gray recently?" she asked.

I let a tiny smile pull my lips. I nodded once again. " 's-" I was interrupted by my phone ringing.

_*But let's take up our hands and walk together. We'll be around each other forever.*_

Quickly, I reached for it in my pant's pocket. I flipped it open and a huge grin spread throughout my face.

"Yo, Gray."

* * *

_**That night...**_

**Lucy's POV**

Natsu, Erza, and I were at the city's central fountain, laughing along with our friends Wendy, Levy, Lisanna, Elfman, Mirajane, Laxus, and the rest from our Fairy Tail Club in St. Fiore University. Even Sting and Rogue, who were members from another club, Sabertooth, were there.

"And then Sting was all like, 'Shut up, Salamander!' Man that was HILARIOUS!" Natsu laughed out loud. Everyone gathered there also laughed along with him.

"Shut up, Salamander!" Sting angrily bursted out.

"See? See?" Natsu mockingly pointed at him. "Told ya guys!" The whole group laughed once more.

Erza walked towards and sat beside me. Her face was serious, with a hint of sadness evident. "Erza? What's wrong?" I asked, concerned. She turned her gaze towards me, her eyes filled with...compassion?

"Luce...I'm going to ask this carefully..." she asked.

I gulped and nodded for her to continue.

"You're still waiting for Gray right?"

The laughter subsided as everyone listened to our conversation. My eyes widened at Erza's straight-to-the-point inquiry. I gulped once more, fighting back the urge to cry.

I looked down and smiled bitterly. "No," I slowly said as I shook my head. "I've accepted the truth already. He isn't coming back. It would be wrong for me to hope for eternity, right?" I chuckled mirthlessly.

Natsu appeared in front of me, his eyes burning with determination, though I don't know why exactly it was there.

"But _that's _not right, Luce!" he prodded. "What's with the sudden change of heart?"

I didn't answer. I only shook my head as the rest joined in, trying to convince me to change my point of view again.

In midst of everything, my eyes wandered over the crowd. I didn't know exactly what I was searching for, but it seemed like my eyes had its own goal. It stopped its gaze on a hooded figure standing not far from us and facing us. My face twisted into that of a questioning expression. Natsu seemed to have noticed the change of expression, so he followed my gaze. What surprised me was... his face brightened and he grinned.

I was puzzled. I faced him. "You know him, Natsu?" I asked.

He turned to me and beamed. "Yes I do," he replied. "And you know him, too."

I stared at him, bewildered. _I know him, too? I don't even recognize him! _Quickly, my eyes snapped back to the person and saw him walking towards us, a smile quite evident on his face. As he walked closer, I caught a glimpse of his features.

Dark midnight blue hair.

A slightly tanned complexion.

And that familiar grin.

My eyes widened. _I-It can't be...?!_

Natsu and Erza appeared beside me, with Natsu's arm draped over my shoulders and Erza's hand holding mine. "Luce," Erza whispered. "We know, even if you'll deny it, that you've been waiting for this moment all this time, weren't you?"

I felt like a statue, unmoving. I was too shocked to speak. Our friends gathered behind us, and I could practically feel their smiles and happy auras behind me.

The "stranger" stepped closer until he was already in front of me. Slowly, he raised a hand and took off his hood.

I took in his full appearance, shock still evident on my face. I couldn't believe. I just can't. This is too...good to be true.

"G-Gray?" I managed to choke out as tears started welling up. "I-Is that really y-you?"

The guy who appeared to be Gray smirked, but their was a twinkle in his eyes. "Come on now, Lucy. It's only been 10 years and you've forgotten me already?" he playfully teased.

His voice. _His voice_. I... All this time... I've wanted to hear his voice...

_And now..._

"I-It's you... It's really you! Gray!" I quickly ran forward and jumped into his arms, embracing him. I let my tears fall freely, for I knew the reason behind it wasn't sadness anymore. But pure joy. "Gray!" I buried my face in his chest, trying my hardest to stop the hiccups and sobs that escaped my throat as I muttered his name over and over.

I felt his arms wrap around me and I felt safe in his warm embrace.

_Finally. After so long..._

I hugged him more tightly. I was scared that he'll leave again.

"All right, all right, time to end the drama!" Natsu, grinning brightly, followed after me and hugged the both of us, followed by Erza and then the rest who just joined in for the fun of it. I laughed at their antics, and they did, too.

I looked up at Gray and smiled as he returned it. "Tell me you aren't leaving again," I mumbled, every bit of it filled with hope.

He smirked again. "I'm just visiting," he said, which made my eyes widen. "In fact, I'm looking forward to leaving again tomorrow."

My jaw fell in shock, even the rest pulled away from the group hug and gaped at him in shock. I raised a hand to slap him when...

"Just kidding~!" he teased. I felt a nerve almost snap within me. Again, I was about to slap him when he caught my arm with his hand. "I was just kidding, Luce! I'm sorry!" he apologized. I could sense the sincerity in his voice.

Still twitching in irritation, I sighed and let him release his grip on my arm. "Just... don't make a joke about that again," I mumbled, feeling my face heat up.

"Alright," he grinned. "No _promises, _though."

What he said didn't irritate me much further. I knew what he meant by that. He knew that I might doubt his promises.

I smiled. "Good."

Sting's annoying voice broke the atmosphere. "All this drama is going to make me puke, you know."

I swear I saw a nerve pop out in Gray's features. "Oh really?" he challenged, but the blonde young man just smirked triumphantly.

"Let's just forget all this drama and get on with the party!" Natsu shouted and everyone cheered in acknowledgment.

In midst of all the laughing and joking, I looked up at Gray. He must have felt my gaze upon him, so he looked down at me. "What is it?" he asked softly.

I smiled. "Welcome back, Gray."

He returned the smile and nodded. "I'm glad to be back."

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**~ END ~**

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**(A/N)**

_*But let's take up our hands and walk together. We'll be around each other forever.* - _Words from Fairy Tail ~Yakusoku no Hi (the last ED)

How was it? :D I finished this late at night, so if the quality's not satisfactory, then... yeah. But I'm planning to edit it soon :). I'm sorry for my long absence from ffn, but I've been kinda active with the internet nowadays =3= Fanfiction, Wattpad, FB, Fairytailfanon... WAHH! I'm soweee T^T

But! I'll make sure I'll update before I get back to school! T^T

Thank you everyone~ Please leave a review so I'll know what you guys think :)

I'm planning to make a GraLu video for this. If it wouldn't be finished next week, then maybe next year =P So for now, Hatsune Miku's Music Box PV would suffice :D

~Ciaossu! ^_^

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_This story was inspired by Vocaloid Hatsune Miku's song: Music Box. Check it out on youtube :)_


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